Steam-engine governor



(No Model.)

J. A. HORTON.

STEAM ENGINE GOVERNOR.

No. 377,028. Patented Jan. 31, 1888.

UNTTE STATES JAMES A. HORTON, OF READING, MASSACHUSETTS.

STEAM-ENGINE GOVERNOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 377,028, dated January31, 1888.

Application filed October 8, 1886.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, Janns A. HORTON, of Reading, in the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Steam-Engine Governors, of which the following isa specification.

This invention relates to governors of the class used in connection withstationary steamengines, cut-off valves, &c.; and it consists in theimprovements which I will now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the. accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,Figure 1 represents a front elevation of my improved governor as itappears when standing at rest. Fig. 2 represents a section on line m,Fig. 1, and also a sectional view of the head or rotating portion of thesame on the lineg yof Fig.3. Fig. 3 is an edge view of the upper portionof the governor. Figs. at and represent sectional views hereinafterreferred to.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all thefigures.

I11 carrying out my invention I construct a governor preferably of theform used by me to operate my improved cut-off valve for which I havemade application for Letters Patent, filed concurrently with this,Serial No. 215,655.

An important feature of my improved governor-is that the balls a italways move in a horizontal plane, as shown in Fig. 2, the ballrods Z)Z) being jointed at c c to a head, (I, which rotates on a rod, 0. Saidrod or spindle slides vertically within a hollow driving-spindle, f,Fig. 2, and is adapted to operate a gear, meshing with a rack, 02, forthe purpose of manipulating a cut-off valve, or for operating a valvefor the admission of steam to a cylinder, or for any purpose for whichgovernors are used. The hollow driving-spindlefis sup ported by a fixedsleeve or hearing, f.

The ball-rods Z) Z) are jointed at the middle to links '1', which aresecured at their lower ends to the main driving-spindlef. Saiddriving-spindle takes its motion through bevelgearing and intermediateshafting from the engineshaft in the usual manner. Two coiled springs, jj, (see Fig. 3,) are attached to acrossbar It, bolted to the lower endof the ball-rods Serial K053151371. (No model.)

I). Said springs are adjusted so as to prevent sudden fluctuations ofspeed from throwing the governor-balls beyond the proper position foradjusting speed, and prevent the oscillations of speed which attend theuse of govern ors of the ordinary fly-ball pattern, where the ballsswing in the are of a circle and are not thus controlled.

When the engine is at speed, the action of centrifugal force is entirelyovercome by the agency of the opposing springs j, and the speed of thegovernor may be much higher than the speed of the engine, which beingthe case causes the governor to act with more accuracyi. 0., thevariation of one revolution in the speed of the piston will, under thesecircumstances, make a variation of a higher number of revolutions in thegovernor in proportion as the relative speed of the governor and pistonis adjusted, the adjustment of speed of the governor being attained bythe adjustment of the tension of the springs jj, which can be arrangedso that the degree of adjustment can be regulated to a fine point by anyordinary devices usually used for the purpose, such as screws, or byusing springs of different degree of stiffness to suit the requirementsof circumstances.

I have shown in Figs. 4 and 5 means for adjusting the rack h, by whichmeans, when the governor is used in connection with a cutoff valve, therack may be adjusted on the stem to regulate the cutoff valves, and thusregulate the speed of the engine. To these ends I have shown the lowerportion of the spindle 6 provided with a foot, I, slotted to receive abolt, m, provided with jam-nuts n a, and eX- tending up into the stem orspindle e and en gaging with the rack h, which is also screwthreaded andadapted to move up in the (love tail slot 0 in the spindle e, as shownin Fig. 5. The cavityp in the stem 6 is not screw-threaded, and byrotating the screw-bolt Z the rack It can be moved up and down asrequired. (The position of the rack shown in Fig. 4. is at its lowestpoint.)

It will be seen by reference to Figs. 1 and 2 that the balls at are indifferent positions, those in Fig. 1 being drawn in, as would be thecase when the governor is at rest, and those in Fig. 2 are extended, aswhen the governor is in motion. it will be observed that the horizontaldotted line passes through the centers of the balls in both figures,showing that the balls are always on thesamehorizontal plane vat allpoints.

I therefore avoid the variations of resistance which attend the swingingmovement I of governor-arms, the pivotal connections of which are notvertically movable.

The balls of such arms necessarily swing in the arc of a circle, and inrising experience the resistance due to gravitation, while the balls ofmy governor-arms do not rise, but remain in the same horizontal plane atall times.

I do not limit myself to the use of my improved governor in connectionwith a cut-off, as it can be used in any position that governors of anyconstruction are used.

I claim The combination, with the fixed sleeve or JAMES A. Hon roiv.

Witnesses:

G. F. BROWN, ARTHUR W. 'GRossLEY.

